Welcome

The Gainsborough Trail is an ongoing project to link all the wildlife sites and major green open spaces around the town of Sudburyin Suffolk (UK) into one continuous walkable path.

When complete, the Trail will connect Sudbury’s beautiful Water Meadows with riverside walks to nearby Great Cornard Country Park, the Shawlands Wood Nature Reserve, across an entirely new path which will be part of the yet-to-be-built Chilton Woods development and then down through Woodhall to re-unite once again with the Water Meadows.

Once completed, the trail is expected to be approximately 12.4 miles in length and open for long walks, short walks, dog walks, sponsored charity walks and sections available for bike and horse riders.

The terrain is very varied, but where ever possible access for suitable wheelchairs and pushchairs will be provided and in some cases alternative routes will be indicated that are more easily negotiable.

Thomas Gainsborough 1727 – 1788

Linking wildlife sites and open spaces together not only benefits people by encouraging healthier recreation and lifestyle opportunities and the chance to re-connect with nature, but also facilitates the easier movement of wild animals, birds, insects, fungi, wild plant seeds and friendly bacteria.

All of this will greatly strengthen biodiversity in the local area, enhance the environment generally and leave an enduring legacy for generations to come.

The Gainsborough Trail is named after Thomas Gainsborough, the famous portrait and landscape painter, who was born and educated in Sudbury. The whole of the Trail would have been a landscape he would have known and loved and often painted and sketched.

The first part of the Gainsborough Trail, the Meadow Walk, was opened by local Paralympian Jonathan Adams on March 16th 2013 and Sudbury’s Mayor for 2012/2013, Jack Owen. Click on the Meadow Walk logo to find further information, directions and a map.

Site Video

Video

An introduction to the Gainsborough Trail.

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Recent Posts

August 26, 2016

For three years now the Gainsborough Trail Team along with Babergh District Council have been battling away to clear the obstacles to extending the Gainsborough Trail into Great Cornard. It is not about money and the design for the bridge to go over the brook near Cornard Weir was completed long ago. The problem has […]

March 16, 2013

THE GAINSBOROUGH TRAIL OPENS 16th MARCH 2013 The first part of the Gainsborough Trail, the Meadow Walk, was opened by local Paralympian Jonathan Adams and Sudbury’s Mayor for 2012/2013, Jack Owen, on March 16th 2013. This was a big day for the Gainsborough Trail Project Team who had been working on the idea for a […]

Contact Us

The Gainsborough Trail Project Team can be contacted by emailing:
gainsboroughtrail@gmail.com
or by writing to:
The Gainsborough Trail Project Team, c/o Sudbury Town Council, Council Offices, Town Hall, Sudbury, Suffolk
CO10 1TL

Bylaws and Access

When using the Gainsborough Trail, please behave considerately and observe any regulations displayed at various points along the routes. In particular, do not disturb or interfere with any grazing cattle - they are harmless if left alone. Please keep your dogs under proper control at all times and clean up after them appropriately to keep paths pleasant for other users.
There are wheelchair access gates on the Meadow Walk and some of the paths are suitable for chairs with appropriate wheels, but please be aware that prevailing or recent weather conditions can make some areas inaccessible, particularly as the water meadows are an active flood plain. Please wear suitable clothing and footwear at all times.

Acknowledgements

The Gainsborough Trail Project Team would like to acknowledge Sudbury Town Council, Chilton Parish Council, Great Cornard Parish Council, Babergh District Council and Suffolk County Council (SCC) Councillors Colin Spence and John Sayers for financial support with this project. Our thanks also to the the Sudbury Common Lands Charity Senior Warden Adrian Walters, River Stour Trust, Sudbury Museum Trust, Mackman Group, SCC Countryside Access Development Team stalwarts David Falk and Jackie Gillis, LAH Signs, Sudbury Market Town Partnership and Peter Clifford for practical assistance with information, resources and design.